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Capibara - Back in Rodney Bay

Saturday, 15 February 2014

Capibara - Back in Rodney Bay

Rodney Bay

After a lovely week in the Grenadines, we sailed back to Rodney Bay, since our flight to go to the Miami Boat Show is out of St. Lucia. We arrived in Rodney Bay at night, but we decided that we could easily anchor in the bay, since it’s a big and open anchorage, and we know the area well. However, the shore lights were very bright, which made it difficult to see the boats at anchor, especially the boats that hadn't turned on their anchor lights.

To my annoyance, Henrik insisted on sailing as far to shore as possible, which meant that we had to pass a number of dark boats that were impossible to see. Luckily, we succeeded in anchoring without hitting anyone (and get into an argument), and the next morning we could sail into the marina.

Uncomfortable when anchoringI'm often a bit uncomfortable when we’re anchoring, especially if there’s not a lot of room for the boat. I'm always at the helm, and our boat doesn't necessarily sail in the desired direction as and when you expect it. On top of this, I'm not very good at judging distances, so I'm always afraid of hitting another boat, which sometimes makes anchoring a bit nerve-racking for me. I think, I have improved over the years, though, but I'm not sure Henrik considers my development sufficient. I of course think he lacks understanding of my concern, but I'm sure he doesn't agree! So far, we haven’t sailed in to anyone, though, so I keep my fingers crossed to let it stay that way.

SignalsBack in Rodney Bay I told a couple of women about Henrik’s and my discussions about anchoring, which led to a talk about the signals we use or are supposed to understand in these situations. One woman told about a time, where she was at the helm and her husband was giving her signals about what to do. However, she had no clue, and when they finally had anchored, she was yelling at him for changing the signals: “Why did you change the signals?”

We laughed of her story, and even more when one of the others said: “Here’s a new signal for him!” and showed us the finger. Luckily, there will be no anchoring manoeuvres for me the next week, but instead daily warm showers in a hotel in Miami. I'm looking so much forward!